Systems and methods for providing geolocation services in a mobile-based crowdsourcing platform

ABSTRACT

The present invention provides systems and methods for providing geolocation services in a mobile-based crowdsourcing platform. More specifically, the system of the present invention includes a plurality of remote mobile devices and a visible light communication (VLC) enabled lighting system configured to communicate and exchange data with a cloud-based service, such as a crowdsourcing platform. The crowdsourcing platform generally provides a geolocation service based on the crowdsourcing, or polling, of users of the mobile devices, in addition to VLC data captured by the VLC-enabled lighting system, so as to determine location and movement of the users within a specific environment. The system is further configured to automatically render a floor plan or layout of a location based on the user data and VLC data.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/745,971, filed Jan. 17, 2020, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 15/353,336, filed Nov. 16, 2016 (issued as U.S.Pat. No. 10,541,751), which claims the benefit of, and priority to, U.S.Provisional Application No. 62/256,884, filed Nov. 18, 2015, thecontents of each of which are incorporated by reference herein in theirentireties.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to management systems andmethods, and, more particularly, to a system for providing amobile-based crowdsourcing platform configured to provide an intuitiveand semi-automated means of collecting and managing user-driven data.

BACKGROUND

Geolocation (or localization) is a term that describes a broad range oftechnologies for deriving the spatial location (e.g., X, Y, Z Cartesiancoordinates) of an object by processing transmitted signals that arereceived, emitted, or reflected by that object. For example, geolocationmay include the identification of the real-world geographic location ofan object, such as a radar source, mobile phone, or Internet-connectedcomputer terminal. Geolocation may ultimately refer to the practice ofassessing the location, or to the actual assessed location. Accordingly,the location of a person may be determined based, at least in part on,data received from a mobile device that the person is carrying orotherwise associated with.

A primary challenge for many geolocation systems is the ability todetermine an indoor location or position of a user. For example,traditional location techniques, such as global positioning satellite(GPS) are shown to be unsuccessful in indoor environments becausephysical barriers degrade GPS signals. GPS relies on accurate distanceestimation between the fixed station (GPS satellite) and mobile station(the receiver). This distance is obtained accurately if and only if thelink between the two stations is not blocked by any other objects andline-of-sight (LOS) conditions exist between the transmitter andreceiver. In indoor environments, however, the GPS signals are blockedby different objects, so they are attenuated to such an extent that theyare either not detectable by the receiver or the distance estimationprocess yields highly inaccurate distance.

Some companies have relied on different methods for dealing with theissues caused by indoor environments by utilizing multiple signalsources, including GPS readings, magnetic field readings,received-signal-strength (RSS) techniques, radiofrequency (RF) signals,and other readings for determining the location of a user within anindoor environment. The current methods, however, suffer from drawbacks.For example, current methods as described above generally require theinstallation of hardware devices within, or in proximity to, the indoorenvironment. The hardware devices may include, for example, beacon-typedevices configured to capture and record the multitude of signals so asto compensate for the indoor barriers. Furthermore, such methods alsorequire the use of a known layout or floor plan in order to determinethe indoor location of the user, wherein, without such known layouts,the systems will fail to function as intended.

SUMMARY

The present invention provides systems and methods for providinggeolocation services in a mobile-based crowdsourcing platform. Inparticular, the system of the present invention includes a plurality ofremote mobile devices configured to communicate and exchange data with acloud-based service, such as a crowdsourcing platform. The crowdsourcingplatform generally provides a geolocation service based on thecrowdsourcing, or polling, of users of the mobile devices so as todetermine location and movement of the users within a specificenvironment. In the embodiments described herein, the environment is anindoor environment, such as an office space. However, it should be notedthat the systems and methods of the present invention may be used inoutdoor environments. Further, it should be noted that the terms“geolocation” and “positioning” may be used interchangeably herein,particularly when referring to “indoor geolocation” or “indoorpositioning”.

The location and movement of the users within the office space may bebased on user data as captured by one or more sensors on the mobiledevice, wherein such data includes, but is not limited to, user movement(e.g., GPS measurements, IMU measurements, etc.) as well as signals fromthe mobile device (e.g., received signal strength (RSS) measurements, RFmeasurements, etc.). In some embodiments, direct user input may bereceived (e.g., users be prompted to verify their location or movement,as well as specific landmarks or objects within the vicinity) so as toimprove the degree of certainty of a user's position within the officespace.

The system is further configured to automatically map a floor plan orlayout of a location based on the user data. For example, the system mayinclude mapping/rendering software configured to identify patterns ofuser movement based on the user data, and, based on further confirmationfrom direct user input, render a floor plan of the office space in whichthe users are located and moving. The system is configured tocontinually update a floor plan based on polling of multiple userswithin the office space so as to further refine and improve accuracy ofthe generated floor plan.

In some embodiments, the system may utilize Visible Light Communication(VLC) to enable geolocation services within a particular environment(e.g., office space), in addition, or alternatively, to utilizing sensordata collected from a user's mobile device. In particular, a systemconsistent with the present disclosure may include a VLC lighting systemnetworked, or otherwise connected to, the crowdsourcing platform so asto communicate VLC data with the geolocation service of thecrowdsourcing platform. The VLC data may be related to user location andmovement, not only for the purpose of rendering and refining floorplans, but to further provide the location of a user with respect to anyissues they may report within an environment, thereby automaticallytying a user's report to an exact location. With regard to comfortissues, such as HVAC (e.g., temperature of a particular room within abuilding), the VLC data may enable a more accurate users' heat profileto optimize the use of thermal comfort data for controlling HVAC outputwithin a given space.

The system is further configured to provide proximity sensing fordetermining the proximity of users relative to one another or relativeto certain landmarks in a given location. This may be particularlyuseful in emergency situations. For example, knowing where users are inan emergency situation, such as a fire, could lead to potentially savinglives, as the system is configured to communicate specific alerts tousers in the event that they are within the vicinity of an emergency.Similarly, the system may be aware of certain landmarks or objects thatmay be of importance in an emergency (e.g., fire extinguisher, nearestexit, medical devices such as defibrillators, etc.). Accordingly, a userin the vicinity of an emergency situation may be alerted to the nearestemergency exit or directed to a fire extinguisher or defibrillator.

The present invention provides numerous advantages over currentgeolocation systems and methods. In particular, the system does notrequire known layouts or floor plans for geolocation. Rather, the systemis able to automatically render a layout or floor plan based on theidentification of patterns of user movement and locations from user datacollected by crowdsourcing techniques. Additionally, the system is ableto confirm, from direct user input, particular landmarks or spaces so asassist in the rendering of the layout or floor plan. Furthermore, theuse of crowdsourcing makes data more complete and up-to-date, as thesystem is configured to continually update a floor plan based on pollingof multiple users within the space so as to further refine and improveaccuracy of the generated layout or floor plan. The larger and morerobust sets of data collected from crowdsourcing users further allowsthe deployment of self-learning algorithms, for example, which mayresult in improved accuracy in a rendered layout or floor plan.Furthermore, the configuration of the system of the present inventionmay reduce or even entirely eliminate the specific hardware requirements(e.g., beacon-like devices) that are required in current systems andmethods.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features and advantages of the claimed subject matter will be apparentfrom the following detailed description of embodiments consistenttherewith, which description should be considered with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of an exemplarysystem for geolocation services in a mobile-based crowdsourcingplatform.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the server of FIG. 1 in greaterdetail.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating at least one embodiment of amobile device for providing user data related to user location and/ormovement consistent with the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the indoor geolocation andmapping system provided by a server consistent with the presentdisclosure in greater detail.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating collection of user data from oneor more sensors of a mobile device and subsequent analysis of such databy interface modules of the indoor geolocation and mapping system.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating communication between the indoorgeolocation and mapping system and floor plan/layout library and themobile device.

For a thorough understanding of the present disclosure, reference shouldbe made to the following detailed description, including the appendedclaims, in connection with the above-described drawings. Although thepresent disclosure is described in connection with exemplaryembodiments, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to thespecific forms set forth herein. It is understood that various omissionsand substitutions of equivalents are contemplated as circumstances maysuggest or render expedient.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

By way of overview, the present invention provides systems and methodsfor providing geolocation services in a mobile-based crowdsourcingplatform. In particular, the system of the present invention includes aplurality of remote mobile devices configured to communicate andexchange data with a cloud-based service, such as a crowdsourcingplatform. The crowdsourcing platform generally provides a geolocationservice based on the crowdsourcing, or polling, of users of the mobiledevices so as to determine location and movement of the users within aspecific environment. In the embodiments described herein, theenvironment is an indoor environment, such as an office space. However,it should be noted that the systems and methods of the present inventionmay be used in outdoor environments. Further, it should be noted thatthe terms “geolocation” and “positioning” may be used interchangeablyherein, particularly when referring to “indoor geolocation” or “indoorpositioning”.

The location and movement of the users within the office space may bebased on user data as captured by one or more sensors on the mobiledevice, wherein such data includes, but is not limited to, user movement(e.g., GPS measurements, IMU measurements, etc.) as well as signals fromthe mobile device (e.g., received signal strength (RSS) measurements, RFmeasurements, etc.). In some embodiments, direct user input may bereceived (e.g., users be prompted to verify their location or movement,as well as specific landmarks or objects within the vicinity) so as toimprove the degree of certainty of a user's position within the officespace.

The system is further configured to automatically map a floor plan orlayout of a location based on the user data. For example, the system mayinclude mapping/rendering software configured to identify patterns ofuser movement based on the user data, and, based on further confirmationfrom direct user input, render a floor plan of the office space in whichthe users are located and moving. The system is configured tocontinually update a floor plan based on polling of multiple userswithin the office space so as to further refine and improve accuracy ofthe generated floor plan.

In some embodiments, the system may utilize Visible Light Communication(VLC) to enable geolocation services within a particular environment(e.g., office space), in addition, or alternatively, to utilizing sensordata collected from a user's mobile device. In particular, a systemconsistent with the present disclosure may include a VLC lighting systemnetworked, or otherwise connected to, the crowdsourcing platform so asto communicate VLC data with the geolocation service of thecrowdsourcing platform. The VLC data may be related to user location andmovement, not only for the purpose of rendering and refining floorplans, but to further provide the location of a user with respect to anyissues they may report within an environment, thereby automaticallytying a user's report to an exact location. With regard to comfortissues, such as HVAC (e.g., temperature of a particular room within abuilding), the VLC data may enable a more accurate users' heat profileto optimize the use of thermal comfort data for controlling HVAC outputwithin a given space.

The system is further configured to provide proximity sensing fordetermining the proximity of users relative to one another or relativeto certain landmarks in a given location. This may be particularlyuseful in emergency situations. For example, knowing where users are inan emergency situation, such as a fire, could lead to potentially savinglives, as the system is configured to communicate specific alerts tousers in the event that they are within the vicinity of an emergency.Similarly, the system may be aware of certain landmarks or objects thatmay be of importance in an emergency (e.g., fire extinguisher, nearestexit, medical devices such as defibrillators, etc.). Accordingly, a userin the vicinity of an emergency situation may be alerted to the nearestemergency exit or directed to a fire extinguisher or defibrillator.

The present invention provides numerous advantages over currentgeolocation systems and methods. In particular, the system does notrequire known layouts or floor plans for geolocation. Rather, the systemis able to automatically render a layout or floor plan based on theidentification of patterns of user movement and locations from user datacollected by crowdsourcing techniques. Additionally, the system is ableto confirm, from direct user input, particular landmarks or spaces so asassist in the rendering of the layout or floor plan. Furthermore, theuse of crowdsourcing makes data more complete and up-to-date, as thesystem is configured to continually update a floor plan based on pollingof multiple users within the space so as to further refine and improveaccuracy of the generated layout or floor plan. The larger and morerobust sets of data collected from crowdsourcing users further allowsthe deployment of self-learning algorithms, for example, which mayresult in improved accuracy in a rendered layout or floor plan.Furthermore, the configuration of the system of the present inventionmay reduce or even entirely eliminate the specific hardware requirements(e.g., beacon-like devices) that are required in current systems andmethods.

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of an exemplary system 10 consistentwith the present disclosure. As shown, the system 10 includes a server12 embodied on an internet-based computing system/service. For example,as shown, the server 12 may be embodied on a cloud-based service 14, forexample. The server 12 is configured to communicate and share data withone or more users 15(1)-15(n) via user mobile devices 16(a)-16(n) over anetwork 18. In the present context, the users 15(1)-15(n) may includeadministrators, customers, or clients of a service provided to one ormore remote users via the server 12. The users 15(1)-15(n) may alsoinclude particular persons to which the service is directed. The server12 may further be configured to communicate and share data with aVisible Light Communication (VLC) lighting system 17 over the network18, as will be described in greater detail herein.

For example, the server 12 may host a crowdsourcing platform forreceiving user-driven data related to a particular environment in whichusers may be located, or otherwise reside, wherein such data may beuseful to an owner of the space or for conveying useful information tousers within the space. In the embodiments described herein, the server12 hosts a crowdsourcing platform for providing a geolocation service.The server 12 is configured to receive user-driven data for use in theautomatic mapping of a layout or floor plan of an environment in whichthe users are located and moving within. In examples described ingreater detail, the environment may include an indoor environment withina building or other structure, such that floor plans of the building maybe generated based on user data. It should be noted that the systemconsistent with the present disclosure may be used for the mapping andgeneration of a layout of an outdoor environment and is not limited togeolocation services for an indoor environment.

Yet still, the geolocation service of the present invention may furtherbe useful in building maintenance, wherein the server is configured tocollect data from patrons or employees within a space, such as an officespace, wherein such data may be related to comfort issues such as HVAC(e.g., temperature of a particular room within a building), buildingmaintenance issues (e.g., lighting issues, cleanliness of facilities,etc.), as well as other aspects of a building or space that may beuseful in management of such space. Accordingly, the system of thepresent invention may be useful with the crowdsourcing platform asdescribed in co-pending and co-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/328,492, filed Jul. 10, 2014, the contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference in their entirety.

In addition, or alternatively, to user-driven data received fromsmartphones, or other mobile devices, the server 12 may receive datafrom other connected systems, which can essentially assist in, not onlythe rendering of floor plans, but also the mapping of traffic patternswithin a space, as well as providing an additional level of user reportaggregation and mapping. For example, the VLC lighting system 17 may benetworked, or otherwise connected to, the server 12 so as to communicateVLC data with the geolocation service of the crowdsourcing platform. TheVLC data may be related to user location and movement, not only for thepurpose of rendering and refining floor plans, but to further providethe location of a user with respect to any issues they may report withinan environment, thereby automatically tying a user's report to an exactlocation. With regard to comfort issues, such as HVAC (e.g., temperatureof a particular room within a building), the VLC data may enable a moreaccurate users' heat profile to optimize the use of thermal comfort datafor controlling HVAC output within a given space.

The system 10 may further include an external computing system/server 22configured to communicate with at least the cloud-based service 14, andsubsequently the server 12, via the network 18. The external computingsystem/server 20 may be embodied as a remote server, for example, forcommunicating with the server 12 and for performing the other functionsdescribed herein. Similarly, in some embodiments, the server 12 may beembodied on the external computing system/server 22. In the embodimentsdescribed herein, the external computing system/server 20 may beembodied as a remote server having one or more databases associated withthe server 12, as will be described in greater detail herein.

The network 18 may represent, for example, a private or non-privatelocal area network (LAN), personal area network (PAN), storage areanetwork (SAN), backbone network, global area network (GAN), wide areanetwork (WAN), or collection of any such computer networks such as anintranet, extranet or the Internet (i.e., a global system ofinterconnected network upon which various applications or service runincluding, for example, the World Wide Web). In alternative embodiments,the communication path between the mobile devices 16, between the mobiledevices 16 and the cloud-based service 14 and/or the external computingdevice/system/server 22, may be, in whole or in part, a wiredconnection.

The network 18 may be any network that carries data. Non-limitingexamples of suitable networks that may be used as network 18 includeWi-Fi wireless data communication technology, the internet, privatenetworks, virtual private networks (VPN), public switch telephonenetworks (PSTN), integrated services digital networks (ISDN), digitalsubscriber link networks (DSL), various second generation (2G), thirdgeneration (3G), fourth generation (4G) cellular-based datacommunication technologies, Bluetooth radio, Near Field Communication(NFC), the most recently published versions of IEEE 802.11 transmissionprotocol standards as of June 2015, other networks capable of carryingdata, and combinations thereof. In some embodiments, network 18 ischosen from the internet, at least one wireless network, at least onecellular telephone network, and combinations thereof. As such, thenetwork 18 may include any number of additional devices, such asadditional computers, routers, and switches, to facilitatecommunications. In some embodiments, the network 18 may be or include asingle network, and in other embodiments the network 18 may be orinclude a collection of networks.

As shown, in an aspect of the present invention, data and otherinformation and services are, for example, input by one or more users 15(shown as users 15 a-15 n) and received by one or more associated mobiledevices 16 (shown as mobile devices 16 a-16 n). The mobile devices 16are configured to be communicatively coupled to the cloud-based service14 and/or external device, system or server 22 via the network 18. Inaddition, or alternatively, the mobile devices 16 are configured to becommunicatively coupled to one another via the network 18. In someembodiments, user data may be passively transmitted to the server 12(e.g., data captured by one or more sensors on the mobile device 16 maybe automatically transmitted to the server 12).

The server 12 is configured to communicate and share data with themobile devices 16 associated with one or more users 15. Accordingly, themobile device 16 may be embodied as any type of device for communicatingwith the server 12 and cloud-based service 14, and/or other user devicesover the network 18. For example, at least one of the user devices maybe embodied as, without limitation, a computer, a desktop computer, apersonal computer (PC), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a notebookcomputer, a mobile computing device, a smart phone, a cellulartelephone, a handset, a messaging device, a work station, a distributedcomputing system, a multiprocessor system, a processor-based system,and/or any other computing device configured to store and access data,and/or to execute software and related applications consistent with thepresent disclosure. In the embodiments described here, the mobile device16 is generally embodied as a smartphone having one or more sensors forcapturing various data related to at least one of user movement, userlocation, signals outputted from or received by the mobile device 16,and the like.

The VLC lighting system 17 may generally include a set of interconnectedillumination sources (i.e., lighting, such as Light Emitting Diodes(LEDs)) positioned within a space or environment, such as office spacewithin a building. In addition to providing illumination within a givenspace, the LEDs are further configured to create a “smart” indoorenvironment, in that the LED light bulbs generally provide a foundationfor networking using visible light as communication medium. Visiblelight communication (VLC) technology is a data communications mediumwhich uses visible light between 400 and 800 THz. VLC is generally isbased on the principle that, since it is possible to turn an LED on andoff much faster than the human eye can resolve, lights can be used totransmit binary data in the form of light pulses without any detectableflickering. Accordingly, this functionality of LEDs allows LED lightingto be used for high-speed data transfer. The general background of VLCtechnology and the common components for allowing VLC with LEDs isdescribed in “Visible Light Communication, Networking and Sensing: ASurvey, Potential and Challenges”, P. H. Pathak, X. Feng, P. Hu, P.Mohapatra, DOI 10.1109/COMST.2015.2476474, IEEE Communications Surveys &Tutorials, the content of which is incorporated by reference herein inits entirety. Accordingly, the VLC lighting system 17 may include LEDlight bulbs installed within a space and configured to, not only provideillumination with the space, but to further capture VLC data associatedwith one or more users within the space. The VLC lighting system 17 isfurther configured to communicate with and transmit such VLC data to theserver 12. The VLC data may generally include user location andmovement, not only for the purpose of rendering and refining floorplans, but to further provide the location of a user with respect to anyissues they may report within an environment, thereby automaticallytying a user's report to an exact location. With regard to comfortissues, such as HVAC (e.g., temperature of a particular room within abuilding), the VLC data may enable a more accurate users' heat profileto optimize the use of thermal comfort data for controlling HVAC outputwithin a given space.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the server 12 in greater detail.As shown, the server 12 may include an interface 24, a data collectionand management module 26, an indoor geolocation and mapping system 28,and one or more databases 30 for data related data received from themobile devices 16. For example, the data collection and managementmodule 26 may be configured to communicate and exchange data with atleast the indoor geolocation and mapping system 28 and one or moredatabases 30, each of which is described in greater detail herein.

The interface 24 may generally allow a user (e.g., an authorized user15) to access data on the server 12. For example, upon accessing theserver 12 on the cloud-based service 14, the interface 24 may bepresented to the user via their device 16, in which the user maynavigate a dashboard or standard platform interface so as to access data(stored in the databases 30) collected from other users and theirassociated mobile devices. For example, in the event that the serviceprovided is the crowdsourcing platform for geolocation services, certainusers may access the data collected from users within the environmentbeing mapped, as well as the specific floor plans or layouts renderedbased on the user data.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating at least one embodiment of amobile device 16 for providing user data related to user location and/ormovement consistent with the present disclosure. The mobile device 16generally includes a computing system 100. As shown, the computingsystem 100 includes one or more processors, such as processor 102.Processor 102 is operably connected to communication infrastructure 104(e.g., a communications bus, cross-over bar, or network). The processor102 may be embodied as any type of processor capable of performing thefunctions described herein. For example, the processor may be embodiedas a single or multi-core processor(s), digital signal processor,microcontroller, or other processor or processing/controlling circuit.

The computing system 100 further includes a display interface 106 thatforwards graphics, text, sounds, and other data from communicationinfrastructure 104 (or from a frame buffer not shown) for display ondisplay unit 108. The computing system further includes input devices110. The input devices 110 may include one or more devices forinteracting with the mobile device 16, such as a keypad, microphone,camera, as well as other input components, including motion sensors, andthe like. In one embodiment, the display unit 108 may include atouch-sensitive display (also known as “touch screens” or“touchscreens”), in addition to, or as an alternative to, physicalpush-button keyboard or the like. The touch screen may generally displaygraphics and text, as well as provides a user interface (e.g., but notlimited to graphical user interface (GUI)) through which a user mayinteract with the mobile device 16, such as accessing and interactingwith applications executed on the device 16, including an app forproviding direct user input with the geolocation service offered by acrowdsourcing platform.

The computing system 100 further includes main memory 112, such asrandom access memory (RAM), and may also include secondary memory 114.The main memory 112 and secondary memory 114 may be embodied as any typeof device or devices configured for short-term or long-term storage ofdata such as, for example, memory devices and circuits, memory cards,hard disk drives, solid-state drives, or other data storage devices.Similarly, the memory 112, 114 may be embodied as any type of volatileor non-volatile memory or data storage capable of performing thefunctions described herein.

In the illustrative embodiment, the mobile device 16 may maintain one ormore application programs, databases, media and/or other information inthe main and/or secondary memory 112, 114. The secondary memory 114 mayinclude, for example, a hard disk drive 116 and/or removable storagedrive 118, representing a floppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, anoptical disk drive, etc. Removable storage drive 118 reads from and/orwrites to removable storage unit 120 in any known manner. The removablestorage unit 120 may represents a floppy disk, magnetic tape, opticaldisk, etc. which is read by and written to by removable storage drive118. As will be appreciated, removable storage unit 120 includes acomputer usable storage medium having stored therein computer softwareand/or data.

In alternative embodiments, the secondary memory 114 may include othersimilar devices for allowing computer programs or other instructions tobe loaded into the computing system 100. Such devices may include, forexample, a removable storage unit 124 and interface 122. Examples ofsuch may include a program cartridge and cartridge interface (such asthat found in video game devices), a removable memory chip (such as anerasable programmable read only memory (EPROM), or programmable readonly memory (PROM)) and associated socket, and other removable storageunits 124 and interfaces 122, which allow software and data to betransferred from removable storage unit 124 to the computing system 100.

The computing system 100 further includes one or more applicationprograms 126 directly stored thereon. The application program(s) 126 mayinclude any number of different software application programs, eachconfigured to execute a specific task.

The computing system 100 further includes a communications interface128. The communications interface 128 may be embodied as anycommunication circuit, device, or collection thereof, capable ofenabling communications between the mobile device 16 external devices(other mobile devices 16, the cloud-based service 14, and the externalcomputing system/server 22). The communications interface 128 may beconfigured to use any one or more communication technology andassociated protocols, as described above, to effect such communication.For example, the communications interface 128 may be configured tocommunicate and exchange data with the server 12, the external computingsystem/server 22 and/or one other mobile device 16 via a wirelesstransmission protocol including, but not limited to, Bluetoothcommunication, infrared communication, near field communication (NFC),radio-frequency identification (RFID) communication, cellular networkcommunication, the most recently published versions of IEEE 802.11transmission protocol standards as of June 2015, and a combinationthereof. Examples of communications interface 228 may include a modem, anetwork interface (such as an Ethernet card), a communications port, aPersonal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) slotand card, wireless communication circuitry, etc.

Computer programs (also referred to as computer control logic) may bestored in main memory 112 and/or secondary memory 114 or a localdatabase on the mobile device 16. Computer programs may also be receivedvia communications interface 128. Such computer programs, when executed,enable the computing system 100 to perform the features of the presentinvention, as discussed herein. In particular, the computer programs,including application programs 126, when executed, enable processor 102to perform the features of the present invention. Accordingly, suchcomputer programs represent controllers of computer system 100.

In one embodiment where the invention is implemented using software, thesoftware may be stored in a computer program product and loaded into thecomputing system 100 using removable storage drive 118, hard drive 116or communications interface 128. The control logic (software), whenexecuted by processor 102, causes processor 102 to perform the functionsof the invention as described herein.

In another embodiment, the invention is implemented primarily inhardware using, for example, hardware components such as applicationspecific integrated circuits (ASICs). Implementation of the hardwarestate machine so as to perform the functions described herein will beapparent to persons skilled in the relevant art(s).

In yet another embodiment, the invention is implemented using acombination of both hardware and software.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the indoor geolocation andmapping system 28 in greater detail. As shown, the geolocation andmapping system 28 may include one or more interface modules 32 and amapping/rendering module 34. As will be described in greater detailherein, the geolocation and mapping system (by way of modules 32 and 34)is configured to receive the user data from the mobile device 16 relatedto user location and/or movement within an environment, as well as datafrom the VLC lighting system 17, and further render a floor plan orlayout based on the user and/or VLC data. Accordingly, the geolocationand mapping system 28 is configured to communicate with a floorplan/layout library 36 storing one or more floor plan/layout profiles38(1)-38(n). In the event that an environment is being mapped for thefirst time, a new profile 38 is created. However, due to the nature ofcrowdsourcing, in which users may be continually polled at regularintervals, the geolocation and mapping system 28 may gain access to anexisting profile 38 and update an existing floor plan or layout based onadditional user data so as to further refine and improve accuracy of thegenerated floor plan or layout.

The one or more interface modules 32 are generally configured to receivesensor data captured by one or more sensors 130 of the mobile device 16,and/or VLC data associated with one or more LEDs 131 of the VLC lightingsystem 17. Upon analyzing the sensor/VLC data, the one or more interfacemodules 32 are configured to generate and transfer userposition/movement data to the mapping/rendering module 34. Themapping/rendering module 34 is configured to process the userposition/movement data and generate, or render, a floor plan or layout,as will be described in greater detail herein.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating collection of sensor datacaptured by one or more sensors 130 of the mobile device 16 andsubsequent analysis of such data by interface modules 32 of the indoorgeolocation and mapping system 28. As shown, the mobile device 16 mayinclude a variety of different sensors configured to capture datarelated to motion or position of the mobile device 16 and/or signalseither transmitted from or to the mobile device 16. The sensors 130 mayfurther be configured to capture user input, such as touch input and thelike. As shown, the sensors 130 may include one or more motion sensors132, a received signal strength (RSS) sensor 134, and a GPS sensor 136.

It should be noted that FIG. 5 illustrates one embodiment of set ofsensors included in a mobile device consistent with the presentdisclosure and by no means is meant to limit the kind and/or amount ofsensors for use in a system and/or method consistent with the presentdisclosure. For example, a system and method consistent with the presentdisclosure may include more or less sensors than what is illustrated inFIG. 5.

The one or more motion sensors 132 may be embodied as any type of sensorconfigured to capture motion data and produce sensory signals from whichthe geolocation and mapping system 28 may determine the user positionand/or movement with the mobile device 16. In particular, the motionsensor 132 may be configured to capture data corresponding to themovement of the user device 132 or lack thereof. The motion sensor 132may include, for example, an accelerometer, an altimeter, one or moregyroscopes, or other motion or movement sensor to produce sensorysignals corresponding to motion or movement of the device 16 and/or amagnetometer to produce sensory signals from which direction of travelor orientation can be determined. The one or more motion sensors 132 mayfurther include, or be coupled to, an inertial measurement unit (IMU)for example.

The motion sensors 132 may also be embodied as a combination of sensors,each of which is configured to capture a specific characteristic of themotion of the device 16, or a specific characteristic of user movement.A motion sensor embodied as a combination of sensors may use algorithms,such as, for example, fusion algorithms, to correct and compensate thedata from individual sensors and provide more robust motion sensing anddetection context than each individual sensor can provide alone.

The RSS sensor 134 is generally configured to capture signal strength ofthe mobile device 16, which may be used to determine the distancebetween stations, as signal strength is usually related to the distancevia a path-loss model which predicts the received signal strength at anyspecific distance based on the transmit power, signal attenuationgradient (known as path-loss exponent), number of attenuators and theirrespective attenuation level, and the distance to the stations. The GPSsensor 136 is configured to capture location data (e.g. coordinates) ofthe mobile device 16. In some embodiments, a system clock may be usedand configured to determine date and time of day of the user device 16,wherein such data may be transmitted to the geolocation and mappingsystem 28.

As shown, the geolocation and mapping system 28 includes interfacemodules 32 configured to process and analyze data captured fromcorresponding sensors 130 to determine user position or movement basedon analysis of the captured data. In the illustrated embodiment, thegeolocation and mapping system 28 includes a motion interface module 40configured to receive and analyze data captured by the one or moremotions sensors 132, a RSS interface module 42 configured to receive andanalyze data captured by the RSS sensor 134, and a GPS interface module44 configured to receive and analyze data captured by the GPS sensor136.

The motion interface module 40 is configured to receive motion datacaptured by the one or more motion sensors 132. Upon receiving themotion data from the one or more motion sensors 132, the motioninterface module 40 may be configured to identify movement of the device16 such as, for example, the direction of movement, location of thedevice 16 within a particular plot, magnitude of movement of the device16, which may indicate user location/movement when combined withanalyzing of RSS data and GPS data by the RSS and GPS interface modules42, 44. The motion interface module 40 may include custom, proprietary,known and/or after-developed motion detection code (or instruction sets)that are generally well-defined and operable to identify a motion event.

As previously described, in some embodiments, direct user input may bereceived (e.g., users be prompted to verify their location or movement,as well as specific landmarks or objects within the vicinity) so as toimprove the degree of certainty of a user's position or movement withina space.

The mapping system 28 may further include additional componentsconfigured to be operably associated with the VLC lighting system 17 soas to receive, process, and analyze VLC data captured and providedthereto from the VLC lighting system 17. For example, the VLC technologyprovided by the VLC lighting system 17 of the present disclosure couldprovide an exact location of a user as they are walking through abuilding or within office space. Accordingly, the benefits of such VLCdata include combining the VLC data with the user-driven data capturedby one or more sensors in the user's mobile device, thereby resulting ina robust set of location and movement data, further resulting inimproved floor layout rendering or mapping. The crowdsourcing platformcan use the VLC data for other purposes, including locating users'reports, enabling more accurate user polling based on their accuratelocation, thereby aiding in increasing social engagement of users basedon their location, enabling more accurate users' heat profiles tooptimize the use of thermal comfort data, enabling more accuratelocating of any reported issues within the space. The VLC data canfurther be used for analytics of geo-positioned data. For example, suchbenefits include energy savings per zone via thermal reporting, as wellas improved prediction of potential issues and problematic zones.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating communication between the indoorgeolocation and mapping system 28, floor plan/layout library 36, and themobile device 16. Upon analyzing the sensor data, the one or moreinterface modules 32 are configured to generate and transfer userposition/movement data to the mapping/rendering module 34 for subsequentrendering of a floor plan or layout to be saved in a profile 38 of thelibrary 36. In particular, the mapping/rendering module 34 may includecustom, proprietary, known and/or after-developed data and graphics code(or instruction sets, functions, etc.) that are generally well-definedand operable to receive the position/movement data from the interfacemodules 32 and generate a visual model of a floor plan or layout of thespace in which a user is located. The mapping/rendering module 34 mayfurther be configured to identify patterns of user movement based on theposition/movement data, and, based on further confirmation from directuser input, render a floor plan or layout. The mapping/rendering module34 is configured to continually update a floor plan or layout based onpolling of multiple users within the space so as to further refine andimprove accuracy of the generated floor plan or layout. For example, thesystem may be configured to communicate with a user via their mobiledevice and prompt the user to provide an indication as to their currentlocation within a given space. The user input may then be used with thesensor data to confirm or improve rendering of a floor plan or layout.

In some embodiments, the system is further configured to provideproximity sensing for determining the proximity of users relative to oneanother or relative to certain landmarks in a given location. This maybe particularly useful in emergency situations. For example, in additionto receiving sensor data, the geolocation and mapping system 28 may beconfigured to receive user input tied to the sensor data, such that thesystem can assign a user's identity or an identity of the mobile device16 to specific position/movement data so as to track a location of auser at any given moment. Thus, each user may include a profile48(1)-48(n) stored within a user library 46, wherein the profile 48 mayinclude specifics about a user (e.g., user characteristics, usersettings for the service, etc.) as well as a current or last knownposition of the user within a given floor plan or layout. The system mayutilize the location of a user for purposes of providing a communicationalert to the user's mobile device 16, which may be particularly usefulin certain situations, such as emergency situations. For example, thesystem is configured to communicate specific alerts to users in theevent that they are within the vicinity of an emergency. Similarly, thesystem may be aware of certain landmarks or objects that may be ofimportance in an emergency (e.g., fire extinguisher, nearest exit,medical devices such as defibrillators, etc.). Accordingly, a user inthe vicinity of an emergency situation may be alerted to the nearestemergency exit or directed to a fire extinguisher or defibrillator.

The present invention provides numerous advantages over currentgeolocation systems and methods. In particular, the system does notrequire known layouts or floor plans for geolocation. Rather, the systemis able to automatically render a layout or floor plan based on theidentification of patterns of user movement and locations from user datacollected by crowdsourcing techniques. Additionally, the system is ableto confirm, from direct user input, particular landmarks or spaces so asassist in the rendering of the layout or floor plan. Furthermore, theuse of crowdsourcing makes data more complete and up-to-date, as thesystem is configured to continually update a floor plan based on pollingof multiple users within the space so as to further refine and improveaccuracy of the generated layout or floor plan. The larger and morerobust sets of data collected from crowdsourcing users further allowsthe deployment of self-learning algorithms, for example, which mayresult in improved accuracy in a rendered layout or floor plan.Furthermore, the configuration of the system of the present inventionmay reduce or even entirely eliminate the specific hardware requirements(e.g., beacon-like devices) that are required in current systems andmethods.

As used in any embodiment herein, the term “module” may refer tosoftware, firmware and/or circuitry configured to perform any of theaforementioned operations. Software may be embodied as a softwarepackage, code, instructions, instruction sets and/or data recorded onnon-transitory computer readable storage medium. Firmware may beembodied as code, instructions or instruction sets and/or data that arehard-coded (e.g., nonvolatile) in memory devices. “Circuitry”, as usedin any embodiment herein, may comprise, for example, singly or in anycombination, hardwired circuitry, programmable circuitry such ascomputer processors comprising one or more individual instructionprocessing cores, state machine circuitry, and/or firmware that storesinstructions executed by programmable circuitry. The modules may,collectively or individually, be embodied as circuitry that forms partof a larger system, for example, an integrated circuit (IC), systemon-chip (SoC), desktop computers, laptop computers, tablet computers,servers, smart phones, etc.

Any of the operations described herein may be implemented in a systemthat includes one or more storage mediums having stored thereon,individually or in combination, instructions that when executed by oneor more processors perform the methods. Here, the processor may include,for example, a server CPU, a mobile device CPU, and/or otherprogrammable circuitry.

Also, it is intended that operations described herein may be distributedacross a plurality of physical devices, such as processing structures atmore than one different physical location. The storage medium mayinclude any type of tangible medium, for example, any type of diskincluding hard disks, floppy disks, optical disks, compact diskread-only memories (CD-ROMs), compact disk rewritables (CD-RWs), andmagneto-optical disks, semiconductor devices such as read-only memories(ROMs), random access memories (RAMs) such as dynamic and static RAMs,erasable programmable read-only memories (EPROMs), electrically erasableprogrammable read-only memories (EEPROMs), flash memories, Solid StateDisks (SSDs), magnetic or optical cards, or any type of media suitablefor storing electronic instructions. Other embodiments may beimplemented as software modules executed by a programmable controldevice. The storage medium may be non-transitory.

As described herein, various embodiments may be implemented usinghardware elements, software elements, or any combination thereof.Examples of hardware elements may include processors, microprocessors,circuits, circuit elements (e.g., transistors, resistors, capacitors,inductors, and so forth), integrated circuits, application specificintegrated circuits (ASIC), programmable logic devices (PLD), digitalsignal processors (DSP), field programmable gate array (FPGA), logicgates, registers, semiconductor device, chips, microchips, chip sets,and so forth.

Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment” or “anembodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, orcharacteristic described in connection with the embodiment is includedin at least one embodiment. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in oneembodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout thisspecification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics maybe combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

The terms and expressions which have been employed herein are used asterms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention,in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalentsof the features shown and described (or portions thereof), and it isrecognized that various modifications are possible within the scope ofthe claims. Accordingly, the claims are intended to cover all suchequivalents.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

References and citations to other documents, such as patents, patentapplications, patent publications, journals, books, papers, webcontents, have been made throughout this disclosure. All such documentsare hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for allpurposes.

Equivalents

Various modifications of the invention and many further embodimentsthereof, in addition to those shown and described herein, will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art from the full contents of thisdocument, including references to the scientific and patent literaturecited herein. The subject matter herein contains important information,exemplification and guidance that can be adapted to the practice of thisinvention in its various embodiments and equivalents thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for providing geolocation services in amobile-based crowdsourcing platform, the system comprising: a serverconfigured to implement a crowdsourcing platform and to communicate withand exchange data with mobile devices via the crowdsourcing platform,the server comprising at least one processor coupled to memorycontaining instructions executable by the at least one processor tocause the server to: receive, from a first user mobile device associatedwith a first user who is responsible for maintenance of a facilitywithin an environment, first user data relating to cleanliness of thefacility; update a layout or floor plan of the environment based on thefirst user data to reflect cleanliness status of the facility and storethe updated layout or floor plan on the crowdsourcing platform; andprovide, via the crowdsourcing platform, access to the updated layout orfloor plan from user mobile devices based at least in part on locationof the user devices determined from crowdsourced user location andmovement data.
 2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the environmentis an indoor environment.
 3. A system according to claim 1, wherein thefirst user data is received via the crowdsourcing platform.
 4. A systemaccording to claim 1, wherein the server determines the location of thefirst user mobile device from crowdsourced user location and movementdata.
 5. A system according to claim 1, wherein the server providesaccess to the updated layout or floor plan to a given user when thegiven user is determined to be in proximity to the facility.
 6. A systemaccording to claim 5, wherein the server provides a communication alertto the given user when the given user is determined to be in proximityto the facility.
 7. A system according to claim 1, wherein the serverreceives, from a second user mobile device associated with a second userdifferent than the first user, via the crowdsourcing platform, seconddata related to cleanliness of the facility and updates the layout orfloor plan based on the second user data.
 8. A system according to claim1, the mobile devices are selected from the group consisting of a tabletcomputer, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a mobile computingdevice, a smart phone, and a cellular telephone.
 9. A system accordingto claim 1, wherein the server and the user mobile devices areconfigured to wirelessly communicate and exchange data with one anotherover a network.
 10. A system according to claim 1, wherein thecommunication and exchange of data between the server and the usermobile devices is provided via a cloud-based service.
 11. A method forproviding geolocation services in a mobile-based crowdsourcing platform,the system comprising: providing a server configured to implement acrowdsourcing platform and to communicate with and exchange data withmobile devices via the crowdsourcing platform; receiving, by the server,from a first user mobile device associated with a first user who isresponsible for maintenance of a facility within an environment, firstuser data relating to cleanliness of the facility; updating, by theserver, a layout or floor plan of the environment based on the firstuser data to reflect cleanliness status of the facility and storing theupdated layout or floor plan on the crowdsourcing platform; andproviding, via the crowdsourcing platform, access to the updated layoutor floor plan from user mobile devices based at least in part onlocation of the user devices determined from crowdsourced user locationand movement data.
 12. A method according to claim 11, wherein theenvironment is an indoor environment.
 13. A method according to claim11, wherein the first user data is received via the crowdsourcingplatform.
 14. A method according to claim 11, wherein the serverdetermines the location of the first user mobile device fromcrowdsourced user location and movement data.
 15. A method according toclaim 11, wherein the server provides access to the updated layout orfloor plan to a given user when the given user is determined to be inproximity to the facility.
 16. A method according to claim 15, whereinthe server provides a communication alert to the given user when thegiven user is determined to be in proximity to the facility.
 17. Amethod according to claim 11, wherein the server receives, from a seconduser mobile device associated with a second user different than thefirst user, via the crowdsourcing platform, second data related tocleanliness of the facility and updates the layout or floor plan basedon the second user data.
 18. A method according to claim 11, the mobiledevices are selected from the group consisting of a tablet computer, alaptop computer, a notebook computer, a mobile computing device, a smartphone, and a cellular telephone.
 19. A method according to claim 11,wherein the server and the user mobile devices are configured towirelessly communicate and exchange data with one another over anetwork.
 20. A method according to claim 11, wherein the communicationand exchange of data between the server and the user mobile devices isprovided via a cloud-based service.